(MENAFN) Following a year-long detention in Turkey, German reporter Deniz Yucel was released on Friday, says Ankara held him against his well and that the reason for his arrest remains unclear.
"I still don't know why I was arrested a year ago, or, to be more precise, why I was taken hostage," he said in a video posted on the Twitter account of the Free Deniz campaign.
"And I still don't know why I was released," Yucel, who works for the newspaper Die Welt, continued.
A Turkish court had ordered the 44-years-old release earlier that day in spite of accepting an indictment from prosecutors which asked for up to 18 years in prison for the journalist on charges of "making propaganda for a terrorist organization" and "inciting people to hatred and hostility".
Confirming that no deal has been done with the Turkish government, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel who said the release was "a good day for us all."
"I can assure you that there were no agreements, trade-offs or ... deals made in connection with this," he said in Berlin.
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